Signs The real version Sort of
by PennyLane125
Summary: The real Signs movie...but with a different variation. Possibly different characters, new plot lines...you never know.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from signs.too bad.oh well. Get the picture?  
  
Prologue  
  
It was as if all the sound had drowned from his senses. He was sitting in his car, which didn't feel real; just a temporary shield from the cold air and hard dirt road that seemed to stretch on in front of him. As the car moved forward, slower towards the flashing lights in front of him, he still felt nothing in his mind. It wasn't real. She was fine. She always walked around before dinner.  
  
She loved to walk. She said it was like God's way of previewing heaven.the angels floated on clouds up there.  
  
He stopped the car. * * *  
  
GRAHAM  
  
I sat straight up in bed, aching from age and sleep. The bedroom door was wide open, facing Bo's room. Her door was closed, plastered with school art projects and coloured academic ribbons.  
  
A quick flash in my peripheral vision made me jerk my head to the side window. The crack of my neck almost overtook the squawks from a family of crows. They were sitting on top of the separate house, 20 feet from the driveway and balanced on top of 17 wooden stairs.  
  
I stood up and glanced out at the cornfields which swayed in the morning breeze. My feet didn't make a sound as they headed over to Bo's door. There I stood, drowsy but with a strange parent's tugging at the back of my mind. I stared at a picture of Curious George in yellow pencil crayon before shaking my head and stumbling to the bathroom. I caught the time on the hall clock.too early in the AM.  
  
Halfway through brushing my teeth and staring for the 40th time at the tiny lines around my eyes in the mirror, I heard a faint cry over the tap water. I quickly cupped my hand over it and stuck my head out the door. The cry came again, faint but high and shrill-pitched. I spit out the toothbrush and ran into Bo's room. Her bed was vacant and messy. I heard Isabel and Houdini barking outside. Our two German shepherds were losing it.  
  
I almost tripped down our carpeted stairs running towards the front door. The big wooden one was flung open and our tiny screen door spilt checkered patches of sunlight onto the hardwood floors that stretched from there to the kitchen. I burst through it and looked around. Our wide verandah was empty and early morning rural Pennsylvania was all around me. It smelled like rain. There was no sound.  
  
I stepped down the rotting steps onto dew-wet grass. Panic started to shake my hands in an unfriendly greeting and I pulled them towards me in retaliation.  
  
The cry came again. From the cornfields.  
  
MERRIL  
  
I suddenly realized it was a dream I was having when a fat man in the G-string came and sat on me, leaving all the beach-tanned bikini models for himself. Then I forced myself awake and landed on the floor beside my bed. I stood up and looked around to see if anyone was watching. I was alone in my room.a small shack beside Graham's house/farm. My daughter's bed was in the corner.empty and left like it belonged to a dead person. Jesus. I stood there staring at the hardwood. Of course it was reality. Where in countryfarm Pennsylvania could you meet quality women?  
  
I suddenly heard screaming from outside. It sounded like Bo. Oh god.  
  
I pulled on jeans and ran down the stairs that led from my tiny shack room right to the ground outside. It was 20 feet above the ground and not much. I would never complain to Graham, though. I saw him burst through his door onto the verandah. He had panic- stricken eyes and I suddenly got a chill. He started running toward the cornfields which was where the cries were coming from. The tall stalks were still and eerie.  
  
I ran toward him. He stopped ten feet from the stalks and turned to face me. His look said it all.he never lost it. He was the father, he was always straight. "Where are they?" I said, breathless.  
  
In a sudden burst of a second, Gwen came running out of the cornstalks in front of us. She was still in pajamas, with bits of cornstalk strings in her hair. She had a strange bout of darting eyes and she was flushed. Wide-awake and flipped out of her gourd.  
  
She looked at me and at Graham. Nothing was said for a second but we started running after her when Bo yelled again. Weaving in and out of the corn was tricky; doing it while running took all our coordination. I was in front of my brother and behind my daughter on a July morning running through vegetation. And I was sure it wasn't going to end well.  
  
Gwen quickly turned left and sprinted toward a small figure in a blue dress standing in the middle of the endless stalks. It was Bo. She was yelling at the top of her lungs for her dad. Morgan was nowhere to be seen. Gwen reached Bo first and scooped her up into her arms. Graham and me stopped beside them. I pushed the tall sweeping corn out of my face and looked at Bo. She was four years old with eyes like her father.  
  
Graham stood beside Gwen who was glancing around for her other cousin. It was hard to see ten feet in front of you.  
  
GWEN  
  
I could feel Bo shaking in my arms. She looked into my eyes and ran her fingers through my long brown hair. "You're not in my dreams," she whispered. My uncle Graham was standing beside me searching her face for answers. He looked at me and I nodded, handing her to my dad who was standing behind me, grabbing my shoulder. Graham dashed off towards Morgan's cries. They were coming from the middle of the field, urgent and frightened. I couldn't blame him.  
  
I saw what he saw. That morning. He ran into my room and jumped on me, hand in hand with Bo, who looked confused and hungry at 7 am. I was in bed and my dad was still snoring. They rambled on about the dogs and I had run outside with them to the fields.  
  
Dad and me were following my uncle. He was out of sight now. Bo was breathing hard behind me. I could hear her talking to him in his ear. "The dogs," she was saying.  
  
"Gwen, they." he panted, still running behind. He couldn't finish.  
  
"Dad, you have to see this," I panted back. I turned my head to look at him and nearly tripped over Morgan. He was standing straight up and still staring out towards it. The fields. Graham was squatted down in the dirt to be more level with him. There was nothing moving except for Bo, who was grabbing onto dad's shoulders. I could feel her confusion just radiating off her.  
  
We all stared out at the corn. My little cousin took his dad by the chin and turned his head to look out at it. He spoke timidly: "I think God did it."  
  
"Did what?" whispered my dad. I threw my hand in his face to quiet him. He swatted it away. Graham slowly stood up in front of me and stepped into the circle in the middle of the field.  
  
It was a perfect circle. A perfect crop circle, all the stalks bent down but not broken. The centre was at least 40 feet wide. Houdini and Isabel were circling it, in opposite directions, yapping to the world.  
  
We stepped into the circle, all of us, surveying, observing. I grabbed dad's hand. It wasn't shaking. I looked up at him. He was staring at his brother with a look of bewilderment. More than usual. He felt me looking and turned his head. His dark eyes burned into mine. The expression was intense.  
  
I opened my mouth. "There's more," I choked out.  
  
"Oh, God," said Graham.  
  
"My dreams were real," squeaked Bo.  
  
A/N Sooo.I don't know what to say.ummm.please review? Thank you 


	2. Proper Perspective

Proper Perspective  
  
Merril  
  
Graham was off somewhere talking to Carolyn, the town's only legit sheriff. He had called her right after he yanked us all out of the cornfields. We only had one legit sheriff because the town was so small. I guess there were advantages. Which I didn't know at the time but you know the expression they say.I actually didn't know that one either.  
  
When I first saw the circle, I was confused. Your initial reaction to something like that is not easily defined. I mean, the kids always overreact and Graham always underreacts. Gwen's the only one who I can look to for the straight reactions. And that is a sad thing to say but it's worse to say that she practically raised herself after our already broken home broke up. That poor girl is fifteen, living on a farm with all males except for a single girl who's nowhere near puberty. No mom to constantly confide in and no real sign that she could confide in me.  
  
But when I saw her face out in the fields.I didn't know what to think. She quickly took my hand and led me out to our little rent and board, bed and breakfast sized crashpad and expertly climbed up onto its' roof. I wrenched myself up the gutter and after tearing five different ligaments, was level with her. It was still early so you had to shield your eyes from the sun.  
  
But when we were that high up, you could see the entire field. You could see the full design of the crop circle. There was an entire design of circles and lines, all intertwining and interlocking in a somewhat architectural pattern. Both of us knew though, squatting down, staring out at it, that this was no everyday design made by squeaky voiced honor roll students. This design was completely perfect. The stalks were bent over but not broken. It couldn't have been done by hand; no, it was too perfect.  
  
"Have Bo and Morgan been up here?" I asked her.  
  
She was gripping as much roof as she could and squinting out at the fields. "I would never let them up here," she replied. "Bo would give me a lecture."  
  
"Do they know what it looks like?"  
  
She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a folded paper. I took it and was amazed to see an accurate sketch of the sign. I peered at a tiny scribble at the top right hand corner and asked her about it.  
  
"Bo wanted to draw us, too" was all she would say.  
  
I stared at the paper for the minute and tried to think of something to say. I came up with nothing.  
  
"You draw really well."  
  
She stared at me with this incredulous look on her face. "You're so." she started, clenching her fists for an adjective.  
  
"Pensive?" I tried.  
  
"Jesus Dad, have you even seen what's in our cornfields? Try and put this in the proper perspective." She sighed and started to shimmy down to the grassy ground.  
  
I looked out at the fields again and then looked down at her just as she hit the ground. Leaning over the edge I yelled down: "All I'm saying is that you put it to excellent use!" She didn't say anything but just kicked at the ground. Her sandal came off and she scrambled to get it.  
  
"Gwen! Are you listening to me?" I yelled again. My hand slipped off the edge and I did an awkward twist to stay on the high roof. I landed on my side. Ow. "Gwen!!"  
  
"You'd better stay up there until Mom stops talking to Graham, unless you want to screw things up more!" Now she was looking up at me with a look of anger and fatigue, like she knew what she was saying but just didn't care anymore. She turned on her heel, sandal still in hand and stalked over to the swing set across the vast lawn where Bo and Morgan were feeding Houdini.  
  
I sat up and stared out at her. Oh yeah, it cut deep. I ran my fingers through my hair and realized I was sweating.  
Bo  
My big cousin Gwen was walking over to me and Morgan. She was carrying her blue sandal in her hand. I remember when my dad gave her those for her birthday. We had chocolate cake and there were ballons all over. I popped a red one.  
  
She was looking sad. Uncle Merril was sitting on top of his roof wiping his head and looking at our drawing. "Why's Uncle Merril sitting on your roof for?" I asked Gwen. She came and sat down beside us. She looked angry.  
  
"He's thinking hard," she said to me. She smiled but it wasn't as big as it usually was.  
  
"He's scared about the circles, Bo. Figure it out," said Morgan. "And drink your water." My glass was at my feet. The grass was poking up around it in funny shapes. I could feel it on my legs. Morgan was sitting cross-legged too.  
  
"It's contaminated," I said. It was! It tasted funny, like grape yogurt. "You want it, Gwen?" I asked her. She looked thirsty.  
  
"No, thanks."  
  
"Did you and Uncle Merril have a fight?" I asked. "Is he scared about the fields?"  
  
Gwen sighed. She tossed her head to the side and all her long brown hair fell into her face. It was as long as a rope swing. She looked at me and gave me a bear hug, which are my favourites. "No, he's not scared. You know how he always likes to sleep really late? Well, it's too early for him."  
  
"We woke him up, didn't we?" asked Morgan.  
  
"Don't worry about that," said Gwen. She reached over and patted Morgan on the back. I did it, too. "You two don't need to worry about us, okay?"  
  
I smiled. Gwen looked like her mommy. I think she was inside talking to Dad. I liked her. She always let me hold her police badge and ride up front when no one was looking.  
  
"Drink your water," sighed Gwen.  
  
"Give it to Houdini," Morgan said. "He hasn't drank anything all morning."  
  
I reached towards his water bowl. He was sitting on his stomach, paws out front.  
  
He raised his head really suddenly and growled deep. I could see all his teeth. I jumped back and kicked my water glass by accident. It knocked all over his nose and he stood up, still baring his teeth.  
  
I started shivering. "Morgan." I said. Tears started in my eyes.  
  
Gwen grabbed my arm. Houdini was growling like a bear. The three of us stood up and started backing away from the dog. I looked at Gwen and she looked at me. She was scared too. Morgan started breathing hard. I don't think he had his puffer with him.  
  
White stuff started coming from Houdini's mouth. Gwen squeezed my hand so hard that it started to hurt. "Morgan, Bo," she said. "Listen to me very carefully."  
  
"Gwen!" someone cried. I turned my head and saw Uncle Merril running towards us. He stopped when he saw Houdini.  
  
"Uncle Merril! Don't move!" yelled Morgan. He held up his hand like one of those crossing guards. He was still looking at Houdini. Houdini wasn't attached to his chain. What if he got loose and started to run around the yard? He looked really scary growling like that. I wished he would stop.  
Graham  
I knew Carolyn was watching me as I paced around the inside of the circle. We had explored every inch of the design. Merril didn't understand it so he pulled the kids out to the yard, dragging the dogs with them. Then he raced up to his house. To avoid Carolyn, I think. She came over and didn't understand what we found either. No one in Pennsylvania would. I wouldn't let this get out.  
  
She wasn't so sure, though.  
  
"Don't you want to find out what this is? Who made it?" She put her hands on her hips and turned her back to me, shaking her head. One of the smartest people I knew and she couldn't help. "Father, please."  
  
"Why are you calling me that? My name's Graham."  
  
"Father Graham, then?" She turned around and stared right at me. "Nothing is keeping you."  
  
"If this gets out," I said, raising my hands, "this would fufill the desired part of this hoax." I looked around at it. "I mean, if no one knows then no one gets famous, right?"  
  
She didn't buy it. In her 35 years, she was almost smarter than me. "Who would have done this?" She stopped and closed her eyes. She started again, using a more professional tone. "Do you have any idea who would do something like this?"  
  
I shrugged. She tapped her foot.  
  
We stood there like silent lunatics who didn't know what was what, until I heard a shriek come from behind me.  
  
I whipped around. I could hear the rest of the family now. They were all out in the yard. "Father?" She was right behind me now. I started walking through the stalks towards where the sound had come from. Carolyn was right behind me. She was still talking, like she was on a homicide or something. She chose to take it all serious and here I was, babbling to keep CNN out of it. I didn't want anything to do with the media, whatever sized box it came in.  
  
We stepped into the yard. The first thing I saw was Houdini. He was growling and foaming at the mouth struggling to get off his chain. It wasn't very strong, tied to a 4 foot pole sticking out of the ground and ready to give.  
  
The second thing I saw, was that he was barking to an empty yard. Didn't I just hear a shriek? My eyes wandered over to the verandah and up the steps to the living room window. I saw Bo's tiny face peering out the window at us.  
  
"Stay here," I said over my shoulder. I almost heard a nod as I edged my way to the front steps. They were 20 feet away from me and 30 from the dog. He was barking louder than anything and pawing at his chain. Foam was actually dripping from his mouth. I knew I had to check on the kids. Where the hell was Merril?  
  
I turned around when I reached the first step and that's when I heard the chain snap.  
  
I tore up the stairs and promptly tripped over my feet. The dog wasn't even within 10 feet of me when Carolyn shot it.  
  
It really was like time standing still. Our dead dog was lying on the lawn and my brother's ex-wife was the murderer. She stood, gun outstretched and face determined. I was still lying on the porch, my left kneecap starting to lose feeling. I heard the screen door burst open behind me. I didn't turn around to see who it was. They stood silent, seeing what I was.  
  
Carolyn looked at whoever it was behind me. She didn't say anything, just continued to wear this mute expression. I felt hands under my arms, pulling me to my shaky feet. "Thanks," I muttered.  
  
"No problem."  
  
I turned around to face Gwen. Her eyes were red and she was clutching a red-stained cloth. Her face crumpled up as she stared out at her mother in horror and grief. "You shot our dog!" she yelled. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"  
  
Carolyn slowly lowered the gun. Her expression wouldn't change. "Did you see what it was going to do?" she said. I heard her voice shaking. "It was rabid."  
  
"This isn't some movie!" Gwen exploded. Her hands were covered with red, too. "What the hell did you do?"  
  
I turned my head to look through the window. Bo was still staring out at us, crying. I ran inside to the living room and saw her perched on the top of the couch still in her blue dress. She looked at me. "What happened to Houdini?" she whispered.  
  
"Oh, honey.". I walked over to her and scooped her in my arms. She put her arms around my neck and buried her face in my shirt. I just held her and stared outside at Gwen and Carolyn going at it. Gwen had a bun in her hair which was slowly coming out in wisps of sharp, hot anger. Carolyn had put the gun back in its' holster and was crossing her arms, trying to calm her down but she was completely off the wall, screaming so I could faintly hear.  
  
I lowered my head to Bo's ear. "Baby, where's Morgan?"  
  
She didn't say anything for a second and then looked at me. Her big beautiful eyes were filled with pearly tears and I bit my lip. "Houdini bit Uncle Merril and we ran inside," she stuttered. "Please tell Aunt Carolyn and Gwen to stop arguing, Daddy."  
  
I stroked her hair and she rested her chin on my shoulder, still sniffling. 


	3. Cupboards

Cupboards  
The car stopped. He wasted no time in jumping out and then slamming the door. It was still running; the engine could be heard quietly humming, mixing with the surrounding night music and the tall pine trees that lined the edge of the dark, countryside road.  
  
The flashing lights that he saw in front of him seemed to bring light to the dark night. They brought no warmth though; he was wrapped in his jacket, shivering with the cold.  
  
As he walked towards the flashing lights he recalled how just 20 minutes ago, he had received an urgent call. His family was distressed, but it was his job to keep his head about him.  
  
Besides, there was nothing seriously wrong.  
MORGAN  
"Stop moving!" I yelled. "You're getting blood all over the carpet."  
  
Uncle Merril shut up and continued to hold his arm over the sink. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror and saw me looking at him. Our eyes locked for a second and I raised my eyebrows. My hands were wrinkled with water and blood.  
  
"Hold on, let me look at it," he croaked. He pried my hand off his forearm and peered underneath the pink washcloth we had thrown over it. "Ugggh," he moaned. Houdini's teeth had made four little marks in the skin of his left arm and it wouldn't clot. We had been up there for a minute, the both of us sitting on the edge of the bathtub, listening to Houdini carrying on outside. I read that when you were rapidly losing blood, you were supposed to elevate it but when I mentioned this, Bo started to tug on Uncle Merril's shoulder. I yelled at her to move out of the way and she ran downstairs. Uncle Merril was calm; he kept insisting it wasn't that rapid.  
  
I rolled my eyes. "Bo had the right idea," I mumbled.  
  
"She nearly ripped my shirt off," he replied. "Morgan, you really should go check on your sister." He stood up and threw the cloth out.  
  
"You're supposed to hold it on!" I cried.  
  
"I'm fine, Morgan! Go downstairs."  
  
There was a sudden bang from outside. Houdini's cries fell silent. Uncle Merril and me looked at each other and didn't say a word. I knew what we had just heard. Aunt Carolyn had been on duty, then.  
  
We suddenly heard Gwen screaming. I walked to the window and peered through the blinds. Uncle Merril ran out of the room, still cluthcing his arm. "Morgan, you stay here!" he yelled behind him. Then he thudded down the stairs.  
  
My mouth dropped open as I looked out into the yard. Gwen and Aunt Morgan were screaming at each other out in the backyard. I saw Houdini lying on his side, still attached to the chain. I knew he wasn't alive. I knew Aunt Carolyn had shot him. I wasn't sad, though. Why had the dog been acting so strange? It must have been the signs in the field.  
  
I suddenly saw bright stars in front of my eyes and my chest tightened up. I had to take big gulps of air to stay standing. Stumbling, I flung open the sink cabinet and rummaged through what I could still see. Cloths, pills, a Scuba diving Barbie - Bo's - and I grasped a hold of my puffer which fell into the sink as I pushed things out of my line of vision. I took a big breath of it. I could never get used to the taste.  
  
I stayed bent over the sink for a minute, trying to think of what I would say when I walked downstairs. I knew Dad would come running up to me and whisper to shut my eyes and go hug Bo. Uncle Merril would stand near the door, wringing his hands, asking Dad what to do with the body. Gwen would try not to cry and come over to us and wrap us in another bear hug while whispering out renditions of: "Everything will be fine, just don't listen." Just don't listen? If that could solve everything then Mom would still be alive.  
* * *  
What did I tell you?  
  
Bo and me were huddled on the couch, fingering the throw pillows and squeezing each other's hands. Gwen was sitting beside us, rubbing my back and sniffing. She tried not to look at either of her parents, who were in the kitchen, whispering so we wouldn't hear what they were saying. Dad was outside, getting rid of Houdini. When I thought about this, I felt more tears on my face. I don't know why I was crying. It felt like the right thing to do.  
  
Bo put her hand on my right shoulder and leaned over to my ear. "Morgan, what will happen to Isabel?" she asked. I looked into her eyes.  
  
"Nothing," I said. "Nothing bad."  
  
Bo rested her head on my lap and Gwen looked at the floor. She looked up a second later and saw me staring at her. Her eyes were all red and her lip was trembling. I started shaking. She never cried. Never.  
  
"Morgan?"  
  
"Yes, Gwen?"  
  
"I have to go outside for a minute and talk to your dad. Will you stay here with Bo?"  
  
I nodded. Gwen stroked Bo's hair and then stood up, running her fingers through her hair as she shuffled outside.  
  
Bo was breathing hard. She wiggled her feet as she lay down. Then she turned from her side and looked up at me. "Morgan?"  
  
I sighed. "Yes, Bo?"  
  
"I'm thirsty. Is there any water?"  
  
"You had water outside. You didn't drink it."  
  
She didn't say anything but just stared at me. Then she sat up and grabbed the top of the couch and pulled her legs up so she could see outside. I turned around and rested my chin in my arms. We looked out into the yard and saw Dad and Gwen standing by the garage. They kept looking back and forth at the dead dog that had once been Houdini and a shovel propped up against the far side of the garage. I didn't want to know what they were going to do, even though I did.  
  
"Are we gonna have a funeral for Houdini, Morgan?"  
  
"I don't know, Bo. There are more important things happening right now."  
"Like the circles?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
She didn't say anything then; just kept looking out the window. A few tiny rain drops spattered on the window and I saw Gwen and Dad look up.  
  
Them looking up like that struck sudden thoughts in my mind. What sort of things could cause a big crop circle like that? I had overheard Uncle Merrill talking to Dad before he went into the kitchen and he said that he thought this was way out of the Wolfington brother's league. Dad wasn't sure, though. He's seen them do more vandalism, so they wouldn't have a problem with this.  
  
I doubted both of them.  
GWEN  
The rain started to drizzle down. I wasn't that cold, but it's never fun to be wet. Graham looked pretty uncomfortable. We stood there looking at the shovel and Houdini. He was lying on his side across the yard.  
  
"I know I have this obligation," he spoke above the silence. "I have to."  
  
"I could do it," I interrupted.  
  
"No way. You can't do that."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Because I'm a girl?"  
  
"I didn't say that."  
  
"I lifted you up."  
  
"I know."  
  
Then there was more silence except for the rain, which started to fall down harder. I didn't get it. It was sunny this morning. It lit up the entire circle. Graham looked up at the house and sighed.  
  
"Oh alright." I let out a huge breath. "I'll get mom to do it."  
  
Graham looked up at me. He swallowed hard and rubbed his forehead. "You two were going at it pretty tough out here. You don't have to talk to her right now."  
  
I looked at the ground and blinked furiously. Dad would never say something like that to me. He'd tell me to 'talk to my mother', or 'answer the door, it's her' or 'hand your mother the check'.  
  
"Why can't he do it his own damn self?" I cried. I clenched my fists and stared at Graham. He had a look of the same for me.  
  
"You mean your dad?" he asked.  
  
I didn't say anything for a minute. My mouth was wide open and I didn't realise rain was falling into it until I heard Isabel barking. We had tied her up in the garage. All the while, Graham didn't say a word, just kept staring at me. I wondered if any adult I knew would ever understand me.  
  
I turned and walked up to the house. "Gwen," said Graham behind me. I ignored him and burst through the front door. My hair was starting to go frizzy. I squeezed the water onto the carpet and looked into the living room. Morgan and Bo were sitting on the couch looking at the floor.  
  
"I don't care if you heard. You probably couldn't even hear," I spoke. My voice came out all hoarse.  
  
Morgan looked up while Bo didn't move. I shrugged and said: "I'm sorry. I'm just."  
  
"I know," he said. "It's OK."  
  
"I'm thirsty," said Bo.  
  
"Hold on." I turned and shuffled towards the kitchen, then swore and turned back to the front hall to pry off my sandals. My feet were numb by now.  
  
"Ow, ow, ow," I whispered to myself, going back towards the kitchen. I walked right in on Mom and Dad whisper-fighting. Mom was crossing her arms and tossing her long brown hair over her shoulder. Dad was bent over the sink turning the taps on and off out of nervous habit. I sometimes couldn't stand my parents. They were too young to have me, so what did they know? They both looked at me as I noisily threw open cupboards.  
  
"The cups are over here," mumbled Dad. "Above the sink."  
  
"I know," I replied. Bang. The first set I opened was slammed shut. I started on the pots and pans.  
  
"Gwen." Mom sounded tired. It was still only the morning. Outside was almost dark as night. Graham was still disposing of the dog. I slammed a second set.  
  
"Gwen."  
  
"I'm sorry, yes?" I asked. "Bo's thirsty and she knocked her old water all over our dog Houdini." I turned to the sink, where Dad was leaning, listening to me carry on, tugging at his injured arm. I walked over and stretched my arm over his shoulder to open the cupboard. I couldn't reach. "Do you mind?" I complained.  
  
"Carolyn, why don't you go get rid of the dog." Dad was looking at me as he spoke to my mom. I glared at him.  
  
"Oh that's a real smart plan," I hissed. "She's perfect for the job."  
  
Dad just looked at me with an equally steady glare. He knew how I worked now. Mom was silent behind me. "Go get rid of the dog!" I yelled. She stalked out of the kitchen. Dad didn't say anything, not when we both heard the front screen door bang shut, not when I gave up on his blocked cupboard and started looking under the stove.  
  
"You wanna tell me what the hell that was about?" he spoke. "You got a serious problem and I want it to stop now."  
  
I stood up and looked at him again. "There's nothing wrong with me. I'm fine. Like you and Mom are fine."  
  
He threw up his hands. "Your mother and I have nothing to do with this. You've been bitchy all morning, ever since you dropped off the rooftop."  
  
"Don't call me that!" I yelled. "I've got a perfect right to be like this. I'm fifteen! I'm not like you people!"  
"What's that supposed to mean?"  
  
"No one gets why I'm always "hostile" or whatever." I was really yelling now. Didn't he get it? "Our pet dog is dead! I saw it killed by someone I love!"  
  
Dad suddenly threw open the cupboard behind him and started rummaging around wildly with his good hand. "You want cups?" he said, in a normal tone.  
  
"That's it?" I stalked over to him and looked at him sideways. "Aren't you gonna tell me to."  
He ducked around me to the sink and turned on the cold water. He placed the cup under it and it filled up slowly. I stared at him as he quickly shut it off.  
  
"Here you go, Bo." Dad walked over to her, standing at the kitchen's entrance with a scared look on her face. He placed the pink glass in her hand and she toddled off towards the living room, where I heard Morgan running back to the couch. He had heard the whole thing.  
  
I was still at the sink, silent now and breathing hard. Dad turned and looked at me. His dark eyes were flashing with a mixture of anger and sadness. I gasped, barely audible. He stared at me, lips pressed together and hands at his sides. I wanted to apologize but didn't have enough time to think about how to form it in words, before he left the room.  
  
I sighed and put my face, in my hands, still standing at the sink.  
  
MERRILL  
  
I walked into the living room. Bo was sipping her water while Morgan told her a story.  
  
"Shouldn't you guys be playing Furry Furry Rabbit or something?" I asked. They looked too secure, like they were hiding their feelings. I scoffed internally. Like they'd tell me. Look how I had helped Gwen. She hated me for sure now.  
  
Morgan had probably comforted Bo enough. I collapsed on the armchair across from them and closed my eyes. My arm was stinging but I didn't let on.  
  
"So what was that about?" I heard Morgan say.  
  
I didn't open my eyes but just sighed. "It's complicated," I said.  
  
Morgan fell silent for a minute and when I opened my eyes, he and Bo had left the room. I could faintly hear them upstairs in the bedroom.  
  
I closed my eyes and when I opened them again, it was still dark. I stretched and then yelled from the pain. I had completely forgotten about the stupid bite. I stayed in the chair, wincing for a minute and then walked over to the window and peered outside. It was still strangely drizzling. Graham and Carolyn were nowhere to be seen.  
  
I sat on the couch and rested my head on the arm. I felt so guilty for hurting Gwen but at the same time didn't exactly know what she was upset for. I knew she had every right to be pissed about the divorce. And when we went through it, she was so young, too. I shook my head. Carolyn and me wouldn't have made it anyway. We got married and had her way too young. And we were still too young - the both of us - to be raising a teenager. In Bucks County, no less. If we were in the city, it could raise her for us. More or less.  
  
Carolyn only took on the sheriff job because there was nothing else of interest in that small town for her. She was city tough and should have been living there. But she chose the rural lifestyle for Gwen. I got custody and we packed our bags to be close to my brother, who could help us get through our rough times. Over the years, Gwen and Graham developed a relationship that was very different from ours.  
  
And when Graham's wife - Colleen died, the whole system of helping us out got switched around and we actually moved in with them.  
  
I always got the feeling that I wasn't helping much, though.  
  
My eyelids started to droop again. I was so tired. I had called in sick to work and now all I wanted to do was just fall asleep in front of the TV.  
  
I guess I did, because a while later, I felt Graham shaking my shoulder. I sat up, and was disoriented for a bit until I recognized him behind me. "What?" I mumbled.  
  
"The Wolfington brothers are on our roof," he whispered, casting a quick glance out the window and wringing his hands.  
  
"What?" I said again, looking where he was. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive. Bo came into my room and - ". I couldn't hear what else he said as he thumped over to the kitchen to look out it's window. I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arm again.  
  
"Ow!" I cried.  
  
Graham ran into the room. "Shut up! The kids are asleep."  
  
"I thought you said Bo came - "  
  
"Never mind, just - help me do something."  
  
I stood up and looked around. "Where's Carolyn?"  
  
Graham looked around. "What?" he said, going into the front hall and looking up the stairs. He came back. "What?"  
  
"Carolyn, Graham!" I exclaimed. "You know. Five foot something, rather heinous - ."  
  
"That's my sister-in-law you're talking about," Graham said sternly.  
  
"Yeah?" I replied. "Well it's my ex-wife! So she's not your sister- in-law!" I pointed outside. "Are you sure they're out there?"  
  
Graham took my hand and pointed it to the roof. "Yes."  
  
"Well it's time for an ass-whoopin' then," I smirked.  
  
A/N: Just so everyone knows, the first "chapter" is supposed to be a prologue and the second "first" chapter (i.e. what F.F. called chapter two) is called Proper Perspective. Get it? Ok good, now you can review. Thanx ( 


	4. Same Show On Every Station

Same Show On Every Station  
BO  
I walked back into my room and shut the door. I tucked myself in and put the covers over my head. Then I remembered my water. I didn't get a glass yet. So I crossed my fingers and leaned over the side of the bed, lifted up the comforter and peered around underneath. I couldn't see anything so I climbed out and quietly walked to the bathroom. The door opened just as I reached for the knob and I jumped back in surprise. It was Morgan who came out and as he turned the light off, he saw me.  
  
"Bo, why are you out of bed?" he asked.  
  
"I need a glass of water," I whispered. "There's a monster on the roof and I told Dad."  
  
Morgan rubbed his eyes. His pajamas were all wrinkled. "Bo, there's nothing on your roof. Go back to bed."  
  
"Yes there was!" I said.  
  
"Sssshh!" said Morgan. "You want to wake everyone up? Come on, I'll take you back to your bed." He held out his hand but I turned away from him and went into the bathroom. He sighed and followed me. I switched on the light and picked up a cup that was sitting next to the sink taps. Morgan turned the cold water on for me.  
  
"Morgan?" I asked.  
  
"What, Bo?"  
  
"Did Aunt Carolyn do something to Houdini?"  
  
Morgan didn't say anything. I watched him in the mirror. His hair was all sticking up and he looked really tired. Maybe I should have left him alone. "Yes," he mumbled.  
  
We both didn't say anything. My glass was filled so we walked back to my room.  
  
"I left the light on," I said, turning around.  
  
"Don't worry about it." We walked into my dark room. It felt safer with Morgan there. He took my hand and helped put me back in bed. "You want me to get a nightlight?" he asked.  
  
I nodded. Morgan just stood there in the darkness. "Well?" he said.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Do you want it or not?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
I heard him turn and walk out of the room. It was so dark and there were no lights on in the hall or outside. I pulled the blankets up to my chin. Two seconds later, Morgan came back, holding his own nightlight.  
  
"Won't you need that?" I whispered, as he leaned behind my night table to plug it in. It came on and then I could see him, yawning. He stood up and shook his head. Then he sat on the edge of the bed.  
  
"I'm sorry about Houdini," he said. "I know you really liked him. Isabel's OK, though. She's in the garage but I bet Uncle Merrill will bring him in later. Go back to sleep, Ok? Everything will look better tomorrow. Aunt Carolyn's gonna come back to visit, so - "  
  
"Why are you talking so fast Morgan?" I suddenly said. "Are you scared?" He didn't say anything, so I sat up and gave him a hug. I whispered in his ear. "Don't be scared, Morgan."  
  
He hugged me back. At the same time we saw, out of the corner of our eyes, the lights in the yard come on. We saw them out the window. Morgan stood up and went over to it. He rolled it open and put a finger to his lips, telling me to be quiet. I put my hands over my mouth and we both listened.  
Then we both heard at the same time Uncle Merrill screaming. "We're gonna tear your head off!"  
  
Then Dad: "It's time for an ass-whoopin'!"  
  
I looked at Morgan and he looked at me. Then he quickly rolled the window shut. He had a weird look on his face and I turned my head sideways to look at him better. He came over to me and gave me another hug. "Goodnight, Bo." Then he started to walk out of the room.  
  
"Morgan?"  
  
He turned around and sighed loudly. "What?"  
  
I looked at him. "What's a whoopin'?"  
  
I couldn't see him very well, but he looked like he was smiling. "I thought you were gonna ask what an ass was."  
  
I bit my lip and lay back down. "But I already know what that is," I said.  
  
This time I actually heard Morgan laughing.  
  
"What?" I said.  
  
"Night, Bo." He turned away and shut the door. I snuggled down into the covers.  
GRAHAM  
  
Merrill and I met up on the other side of the house, as planned. We were both breathing hard and looking around frantically. "I cursed," I panted.  
  
Merrill nodded. "I heard."  
  
Then, at the exact same time, we heard a thud on the roof. We whipped around and I nearly broke my back in doing so. Merrill started breathing harder. "How did he get there so fast?"  
  
I ran my eyes along the top of the roof, craning my neck and pacing back and forth. Beside me, Merrill was doing the same. "I can't see anything!" I whispered.  
  
There was a sudden thud, like someone jumping and the sound trailed over our heads and to the fields. Then there was a clump on the ground. We stared at the cornfields and heard violent rustling around. I shook my head in disbelief. The jump was at least thirty feet from the roof to the fields. From the roof!  
  
Suddenly, an ear-splitting sound erupted from the corn. I squinted my eyes to look from exactly where but it was so dark. The sound came again, louder and high-pitched. It was almost like a scream. A high-pitched shriek, one that I had never heard the likes of before. Merrill was still and silent, peering out before him.  
  
The corn stopped rustling, along with the noise. My brother and I looked at each other and silently walked backwards to the house, not taking our eyes off the fields. When we reached the steps, we both bolted inside and slammed the front door, locking it up.  
  
We both leaned against the door, panting. I peered out the peephole at nothing. Then I sank to the floor and stretched my legs out on the carpet. I closed my eyes and heard Merrill do the same. I opened them and looked at him. He looked at me. A slow grin started to grow across his face and I felt the same thing happening to me. Before I knew it, we were both sitting there laughing it up. I slapped him on the shoulder. "Is it just me or do your schemes always involve a tangled web of violent actions?" I choked out.  
  
He threw his head back and rested it against the door. "It's you," he cackled.  
  
* * *  
  
The next morning, I called Carolyn again and she came down to investigate what had happened. She sat across from me and Merrill at our long dining room table, her at one end and us at the other. Morgan was sitting beside her, fiddling with her police radio.  
  
"You know, you can use that as a walkie-talkie," she said to him. He looked at her and his eyes lit up.  
  
"Really?" he said.  
  
"Of course, it only works one way," she shrugged.  
  
Merrill was sitting beside me, looking at the radio. "Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose?" he whispered to me.  
  
I shot him a look. He gazed back, innocently. "What?" he asked.  
  
Across the table, Carolyn shooed Morgan away and cleared her throat. She took out a notepad and flipped it open to the first page. "So, gentlemen, can you give me any opening statements?" she started. "I'm sorry but I have to be all official this morning."  
  
I shook my head. "It's OK, Carolyn, you're just doing your job."  
  
Merrill nodded and folded his hands on the table.  
  
Carolyn started again. "Any opening statements?"  
  
Me and Merrill looked at each other. We were completely silent. What else had we seen last night? Merrill started to speak but Carolyn held up her hand.  
  
"Besides: 'it was very dark'," she said.  
  
I looked up at the ceiling and then turned my head to the living room. Bo and Gwen were watching TV and cuddled under a quilt. I yelled in to them. "Can you turn that down?"  
  
Gwen stood up and pressed the button on the TV. Thanks, I mouthed at her. She nodded, and went to sit with Bo again.  
  
"Sorry about that," I said, turning back to Carolyn. "So, where were we?"  
  
"It was very dark," she replied, not even looking at her notepad.  
  
I nodded. "Oh."  
  
"Is there someone that might have a grudge against you?" she asked. "Maybe, I don't know, uh, someone from the church or - ". She stopped when she saw the look Merrill was giving her. "Someone else, then?"  
  
I shook my head. "I don't know - it was probably just a prank. The Wolfington brothers do this sort of stuff - this is right up their alley."  
  
Carolyn shook her head. "I can't just go over there and question them with 'it was very dark' written down, guys. I need some sort of description."  
  
Merrill sighed and furrowed his brow. I looked at him. "Tall?" I tried.  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Tall," he agreed.  
  
"Dad," called out Gwen from the living room.  
  
"Hold on, honey," he said.  
  
"Girl or guy?" Carolyn tried.  
  
I shrugged. "Well, have you seen any women over six feet in this town?" I asked. "Or anywhere?"  
  
Carolyn almost fumed. "I've seen these Scandinavian women - at least six feet doing pole vaulting at the Olympics," she said. "They could probably outleap this whole town combined."  
  
Merrill put his chin in his hands. "Excluding the fact," he said "that a six foot female Scandinavian pole vaulter was on our roof last night, what might be some other possibilities?"  
  
I rolled my eyes. Carolyn was not amused but I could tell by Merrill's look that he wasn't trying to be amusing.  
  
"Dad," said Gwen again.  
  
"Gwen, will you just hold on!" exclaimed Merrill.  
  
Bo appeared at my side suddenly. "I can't find the remote and when Gwen told me to look between the cushions, I only found food."  
  
I stroked her hair. "Baby, why don't you just change the channel on the TV," I told her.  
  
"I did."  
  
"And?"  
  
"Same show's on every station."  
  
Carolyn and Merrill looked over. I saw Gwen glaring at her dad. "So you pay attention when the little one says something," she said.  
  
We all walked over into the living room. Morgan came thumping down the stairs and wandered over to us. Carolyn and Merrill sat on opposite ends of the couch and I stood up with Bo in my arms. We didn't take our eyes away from the TV.  
  
A breaking news bulletin was being broadcasted live, from India. An image of a cornfield was being shown to us from a helicopter's point of view. In the cornfield was a huge crop circle, unlike ours in design but filled with the same mystery.  
  
Gwen leaned over and turned up the volume. A newscasters voice filled the room: This eerie crop circle was found early this morning, in southern India. Cameras have been on it all morning and local authorities have been keeping it under constant observation.  
  
Morgan reached to his belt and lifted his puffer to his mouth. He took a breath. "Extra-terrestrials," he muttered.  
  
"What in God's name is going on?" whispered Carolyn. 


End file.
